Review Poor Quality of Agencies' Online Training

[jstotz]

I've recently switched from SSI recreational courses to TDI for deco procedures + advanced nitrox and I have to say, the quality of this TDI online training SUCKS.

Disclaimers: I understand this is likely to ruffle feathers. No, I am not sponsored or trying to promote any particular agency. Just want to share my experiences and opinions and gather those of others. I do have a B.S. in Physics and an M.A. for teaching high school physics and math from a major university so I'm not completely unqualified to make such a statement. I am only talking about quality of the online training portion; obviously, in-person training quality varies independently.
SSI Online Courses Review Summary
IMO, SSI online training quality started strong and decreased as courses became more advanced: Open water, basic nitrox, Science of Diving, Deep, Cavern, Drysuit Sidemount, React Right, Stress and Rescue.

One can argue that section review questions are sometimes too easy.

Overall quality is acceptable: Organization of ideas, accuracy, plenty of visual aids (decreasing in quality in less-common advanced courses)

TDI Online Courses Review Summary
This would take an essay but my main gripes are:

1. Lack of visual Aids. Most widespread issue I have with these two TDI courses: They're relatively text heavy, with very few useful visual aids.

2. Excessive, superfluous content: E.g. I don't believe it's necessary to bombard students with 3 text-heavy slides apparently cut from a physics dissertation on the radii of bubbles and their surface tension and calculating the forces on bubbles, WHEN the only purpose for this information is to apparently communicate how awesome dual-phase(bubble) decompression models are.

3. Low Quality Test Questions: This is my biggest bugaboo. These test questions look and sound like they are the demented creation of a very poorly programmed AI software that was assigned to read through the course text and come up with random questions.

3a. In the multiple choice questions, there are often distractors that are virtually synonmous with the designated answer. E.g. "a. on-gas" vs "b. absorb" But the particular sentence that the question was copy and pasted from used the term "absorb". Therefore, "on-gas" is incorrect.
3b. Multiple test questions contain simple repetitions indicating contain simple repetitions indicating a lack of proofreading by its proofreading by its AI creator. Annoying, isn't it?
3c. Test questions often create absurd paradoxes where there are either no right or no wrong answers depending on interpretation.

E.g. Do dive tables, computers, and desktop software significantly reduce the likelihood of bubble formation in the body when used correctly?

a. Yes, their accurate mathematical modeling minimizes bubble risk.
b. No, despite precise formulas, these tools don't guarantee prevention of bubble development.
c. The use of these tools creates no differece (<-- spelling error) to the user
d. None of the above



Relevant text:
"Specialized tools for divers such as tables, computers, and desktop software are designed to minimize bubble formation in the blood and tissues. Because these devices are based on mathematical formulas that are theoretical in nature, it is both possible and probable that bubbles will develop even when these tools are used properly"

If you care to pick the best answer to the above question, be my guest.


Additional Disclaimers: I don't have identical courses to compare: I didn't take tech courses in SSI and I haven't taken rec courses in TDI, nor do I know how the quality of these SSI and TDI courses compare to other agencies' online training. As far as I know, this is the cream of the crop!

Please feel free to chime in with your experiences and opinions.

 

[BoltSnap]

Most agencies' definition of "online training" is to provide textbooks in PDF to read online and exams/quizzes that are corrected online. Usually, or most of the time, no real multi-media illustrations, simulations or animations to simplify the concepts for the students to understand/comprehend and remember them.

 

[boulderjohn]

Most agencies' definition of "online training" is to provide textbooks in PDF to read online and exams/quizzes that are corrected online. Usually, or most of the time, no real multi-media illustrations, simulations or animations to simplify the concepts for the students to understand/comprehend and remember them.

That's not my experience. How many online programs from different agencies have you reviewed?

 

[BabyLitigator]

My experience is limited to PADI, which apparently has the slickest e-learning. But there is a real drop-off in the "soft product" aspects after Rescue. They know you are hooked by that point and they expect you to just read the text.

Deep was the best one. Pure text, except a video that appeared to be early '90s based on what the people were wearing and the haircuts.

 

[boulderjohn]

2. Excessive, superfluous content: E.g. I don't believe it's necessary to bombard students with 3 text-heavy slides apparently cut from a physics dissertation on the radii of bubbles and their surface tension and calculating the forces on bubbles, WHEN the only purpose for this information is to apparently communicate how awesome dual-phase(bubble) decompression models are.

I have never seen the TDI online program, but I was a TDI instructor and familiar with the revised course materials in text format just prior to the online version coming out. What you are describing here is what I remember from the text version. It illustrates a problem commonly found in agency course materials.

The revised TDI program made very heavy use of TDI instructor Mark Powell's Deco for Divers for those materials. If you have the book and see those diagrams, you will readily recognize them. That book is very heavy on bubble model theory and VPM. It practically tells you to use VPM and V-Planner for your diving. That was very much the most popular thing to do at the time.

Then everything suddenly changed. Research did not support the very deep first stops those algorithms called for. In no time at all, people were calling for much shallower first stops (still deeper than, say, pure Bulmann, but not as deep as V-VPM or RGBM). Powell was still very much a fan of VPM and deep stops, but a few years ago he, too, finally agreed that those stops were too deep. Bubble models went out of fashion, and people are now primarily using Buhlmann with gradient factors.

But TDI had invested a fortune in those materials, and it could not just throw them out. PADI had a similar problem at the same time in its Trimix class. It required students to plan and execute dives using deep stops. PADI dealt with that by publishing a statement telling instructors the deep stop requirement was no longer in effect.

This sort of thing has happened many times for many agencies. They invest in new course materials with the latest and greatest information, make a huge volume of materials in many languages, and then POOF, something changes.

 

[BoltSnap]

How many online programs from different agencies have you reviewed?

4 - 5.

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

I send students TDI e-Learning for: Cavern, Cave, Advanced Nitrox, & Decompression procedures as needed. I don't think they suck, but they certainly are not top notch or anywhere near what they could be. Many NSS-CDS instructors use this e-Learning even though we teach to CDS standards and not TDI.

What these do accomplish is it allows the student to immediately begin learning the topic without having to wait on a book to be mailed to them. It allows me to be able to cut down on face-to-face classroom time with the basic basics and to be able to more thoroughly explain the finer points, and details of the topics. The e-Learning has a written exam included which is also a time saver. Learning does not suffer; it is simply streamlined.

Some argue that e-Learning detracts from facetime with students in an academic/classroom setting. I agree with this *IF* the instructor relies 100% on the e-Learning to complete the academics. *IF* the e-Learning is used as a launching platform for learning with instructors supplementing what was learned online, in the classroom I find these materials worthwhile.

As an aside we at the NSS-CDS are working on, and 90% finished with an e-Learning module for cavern and cave diving! Stay tuned.

 

[jadairiii]

What these do accomplish is it allows the student to immediately begin learning the topic without having to wait on a book to be mailed to them. It allows me to be able to cut down on face-to-face classroom time with the basic basics and to be able to more thoroughly explain the finer points, and details of the topics. The e-Learning has a written exam included which is also a time saver. Learning does not suffer; it is simply streamlined.

The moderators could close this thread now. This is exactly on point!!

 

[jstotz]

...
As an aside we at the NSS-CDS are working on, and 90% finished with an e-Learning module for cavern and cave diving! Stay tuned.

This is a tangential question I had about my next phase of training: Do you think there's any advantage in course material quality, standards, or certificate respect/reputation to getting cave trained via NSS-CDS vs TDI or others?

I understand there may be a tendency to bias towards one's own training agency, and if your answer puts you in trouble with you other agencies, feel free to pm.

 

[grantmac]

I had a similar experience. However I found the gas planning portion much worse with no questions where you had to actually plan a dive.
This was covered in person but still not great.